We aim to mimic the structure of metal-containing enzymes and their secondary coordination sphere to reproduce the reactivity and selectivity that is achieved in natural enzymatic systems. Our enzyme mimics are designed to include copper complexes covalently connected to organic polymer frameworks. We chose literature-precedented small molecule copper complexes that are active for various oxidation reactions and have modified their ligands to include alkene moieties which can either be directly polymerized or connected to a pre-formed polymer through post-polymerization modification. Currently, we are using reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization to copolymerize the modified ligand precursors with commercial monomers. These polymer-bound ligands can then be metallated to produce our target “metallopolymers.” We have also synthesized the literature-precedented small molecule analogs as benchmarks for reactivity in a range of oxidation reactions and have tested the reactivity and selectivity of these catalysts. Comparison of these small molecule analogs with the metallopolymers will allow us to determine the effects of the polymer framework on catalysis.

Copper-containing enzyme mimics with a polymeric secondary coordination sphere

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